{Haute Destination} Baltimore

The fam and I recently made a trip out to the east coast to visit friends and family. We found ourselves spending a rainy day in Baltimore. Before making the 45 minute drive up from the DC area, we did a little online research to see if we could find ourselves some culinary delights. And culinary delights did we find.

Our first stop was to Chap’s Pit Beef, a little shack nestled in an industrial part of town right in front of a lovely gentleman’s club. The area felt plenty safe when we arrived at noon and people flocked. The line was out the door, in the rain, filled with people of all kinds waiting this pit barbecued beef. Tom and I both ordered the straight beef sandwich (their claim to fame). You are able to order the beef how you like it, so we chose medium rare. You are able to top your sandwich with condiments lined up on the counter. We stuck with Guy Fieri’s version from Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives with adding horseradish and onion. Ladies and gents, this beef was delicious.

In between eats, we made our way over a few miles into the city to the Baltimore Children’s Museum, Port Discovery. We were pleasantly surprised and wowed by this museum. Lincoln had an absolute blast, crawling up cargo nets from level to level of the museum and strapping on a raincoat and Crocs to play in the awesome (and educational) water room. The museum was great for Lincoln who is 20 months old, but would be great for older children as well. If traveling in Baltimore with kids, definitely worth the stop!

Our last stop for the afternoon was to a place close to my heart, a pie shop. I couldn’t make it out of Baltimore without hitting up the highly praised bakery Dangerously Delicious Pies. Accurately described by its skull and cross-bones pie logo, this shop in the adorable Camden neighborhood is filled with 6 ft plus tall men with tattoos, baking pies. The pies range from sweet to savory, with items like “White Trash” Creme Brulee Pie, Crab and Cheddar Quiche and Tomato Fennel Pie. The pie shop was rather crazy being the last couple days left from their Living Social deal, so the options were rather limited and the atmosphere was a bit chaotic. We still got our pie.

We picked up a very warm whole Baltimore Bomb pie that we shared with friends and family. The pie contained a Baltimore favorite Berger cookie (a cake-y cookie covered in fudge) which are melted down in a custard filling. I’m not a chocolate eater, so I cannot comment, but the comments from friends and family said it all. They were obsessed.

I ordered myself a slice of Coconut Chess Pie. Chess pies are a southern pie with a very sweet custard filling. This pie was sweet and delicious, especially being so warm right out of the oven.

A family function was beckoning us that evening, so we did not spend our evening dining at any other Baltimore foodie joints, so no Maryland crab for me. But these two places are definitely worth a trip if you are looking for casual and hearty delicious dining.

Stay tuned for my attempt at making a Southern chess pie sometime soon!